The Truth: What Makes A Classic Rap Album?

Classic: sic |ˈklasik| (adjective): Judged over a period of time to be of the highest quality and outstanding of its kind.

“Classic” may be the most overused word in hip-hop. And following the release of Kendrick Lamar’s good kid, m.A.A.d city, the term’s been ran into the ground. So for the fourth installment of Elliott’s Truth series, he breaks down the anatomy of a timeless album.

I think Kendrick’s will be in 5 years….not so much with Nas….simply because I know it’s expected for folks to remember who Nas is and anything he does is compared to “Illmatic” and as for a stand out song for “Life is Good” There really isn’t one that I remember off top, only the story behind the dress and his marriage. Kendrick’s “Good Kid, m.A.A.d city” because of the story behind all the songs and how it seamlessly describes life on the West coast from his perspective as a youth in the inner city…..like “Illmatic” did. So yeah…I understand where Mr. Wilson is coming from but I still believe Kendrick’s album is a classic.